STOCKTON - The case was growing colder. Investigators had hit a number of dead ends. Detectives believed the body of 23-year-old Dalene Carlson was somewhere in a south county cornfield, but the pungent odor of feed corn was masking the smell of her remains from cadaver dogs.

Jason Anderson

STOCKTON - The case was growing colder. Investigators had hit a number of dead ends. Detectives believed the body of 23-year-old Dalene Carlson was somewhere in a south county cornfield, but the pungent odor of feed corn was masking the smell of her remains from cadaver dogs.

Detective Brad Burrell of the Stockton Police Department endured many sleepless nights during his quest to capture Carlson's killer, but he never relented. As the lead detective assigned to the case, Burrell coordinated a months-long investigation that eventually resulted in the arrest of Jason Ross Gilley, who was found guilty of first-degree murder in October.

Burrell will be honored for his efforts at the Institute of Criminal Investigation Detective Symposium April 7-10 at the Sheraton Universal Hotel in Universal City, where he will receive the ICI award for investigative excellence. The presentation of the investigative excellence award is considered the highlight of the symposium.

"This is quite an honor and definitely something that should have the name of the Stockton Police Department on it instead of mine because this case was the epitome of a team effort," Burrell said. "Quite literally, it seemed like at some point or another, we had every detective in our department working on this case in some capacity."

According to a Los Angeles Police Department website, the award is presented to an investigator, law enforcement agency or task force that has conducted intensive and complex investigations ranging from identity theft to homicide. Winners are chosen by a selection committee.

"We're obviously very proud of Detective Burrell and the entire detective's bureau, because - as he would be the first to point out - he didn't solve this case alone," Stockton Police Chief Eric Jones said. "There was really a lot of great teamwork between the Stockton Police Department and other agencies. A lot of great people came together, but Detective Burrell did a terrific job with his investigative skills and his passion to solve the case."

Carlson was last seen by family and friends on Aug. 7, 2001. Investigators learned she was seen leaving a bar with Gilley, an acquaintance. Gilley initially told detectives he left the bar alone that night, but investigators later obtained surveillance footage showing Gilley and Carlson together at a nearby grocery store after they left the bar.

Police searched Gilley's home and arrested him on suspicion of selling marijuana, but he was released from jail days later because authorities didn't have enough evidence to charge him in connection with Carlson's death.

A GPS device placed on Gilley's car showed that he repeatedly visited an Escalon cornfield on Lone Tree Road. A search team descended on the corn field, but Carlson's body was not found.

Two months later, on Oct. 15, 2011 - Gilley's 26th birthday - a farm worker was harvesting corn in the field when he unearthed Carlson's remains.

An autopsy revealed that Carlson had been shot execution-style with a .22-caliber handgun.

Days later, in his third interview with investigators, Gilley's uncle finally admitted that Gilley had given him a .22-caliber handgun days after Carlson's disappearance, Burrell said.

"I was ecstatic because I knew the chances of that not being the murder weapon were miniscule," Burrell said.

Investigators proved the fatal shot was fired from Gilley's gun. Gilley was arrested, convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

"In 99 percent of our other homicide cases, we get notified because someone is dead," Burrell said. "This was different in that we just knew this girl was missing, and so it was much, much, much more challenging because we really had to work a no-body case.

"We had to work more on intuition and gut than anything else for many months until her body was actually found. One of the things you're taught and one of the things you learn is that you don't want to listen to your gut too much. You have to follow the evidence, but in this case we didn't have a whole lot of evidence initially, so it took a tremendous amount of effort to gather the evidence necessary to arrest and convict Mr. Gilley."

Contact reporter Jason Anderson at (209) 546-8279 or janderson@recordnet.com. Follow him at recordnet.com/crimeblog or on Twitter @Stockton911.

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